


Unum Diem Durantia

by elluxia



Category: D.N. Angel
Genre: Angels, Betrayal, Dark Fantasy, Especially when it involves Krad, F/M, Fantasy, Hormones, Magic, Multi, Plot What Plot/Porn Without Plot, Romance, Sexual Tension, Teenage Drama, a lot of it, i just for some reason like to write porn lately, sometimes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-17
Updated: 2016-01-17
Packaged: 2018-05-14 09:21:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 18,652
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5738230
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elluxia/pseuds/elluxia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kikyo, Daisuke's twin, will do anything to protect her brother; even go so far as to make a deal with a Hikari and his inner demon. What she believes in starts to become obscure when her family's old tales start to contradict themselves and someone from their past comes to collect a debt long since unpaid.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Complications

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daisuke and Kikyo's seventeenth birthday marks the beginning of their new lives at thieves. But, no one ever said it would be easy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Originally I had posted this story on FF.net a longggg time ago. I finally just got back onto AO3 (having lost my username and password) and decided I would post it here as well. Its still in process - unfortunately I don't have a lot of time to write anymore, so updates will be slow, but hopefully not too bad.

"Happy birthday, Daisuke!"

 The red-headed twin glared lazily at the bouncy, excited brunette standing on the ladder connected to his bed. She was grinning down at him, two white animals on each shoulder. Wiz, on her left shoulder, was Daisuke's bunny-like creature, and soon to be familiar. Lelia, on her right shoulder, was the female's white ferret and familiar. Her 'double-milk-chocolate' hair was fashioned in her signature look – straight hair with a pale pink and white large-ribbon-headband on the top of her head. Her pale violet-red eyes stared down at him cutely, and she wiggled her nose. "Wakey, wakey, Dai-Dai!" The bunny on her left shoulder jumped down on the boy's head, making an odd little noise as he did so. "Kyuu! Kyuu, kyuu – _kyuu_!" The brunette giggled, petting the bunny thing. As Daisuke rolled onto his other side, his twin rolled her eyes. "Wake up! You have big plans today, don't you?" She asked, hands on her hips as she leaned against the ladder. One eye closed, she sighed as Daisuke waved at her, a signal to go away. She was waking him up extra early on his orders, and their mother's. "By the way," She stated, grinning, a mischievous look in her eye that Daisuke didn’t catch. "The Harada twins are in the kitchen – Risa has a gift for you, by the looks of it."

Daisuke shot up, the bunny went flying. Kikyo stuck her arm out and grabbed the bunny before he went flying off the edge. She jumped down, off the ladder, as Daisuke nudged her away. "Get dressed; you don't want Risa seeing you in your jammies, do you?" She asked, smirking all the while as Daisuke ran to his closet, tossing on his school uniform. Kikyo was already dressed in her school uniform, the red skirt and white sailor top, and she just watched with Wiz and Lelia as the red-head freaked out. Once Daisuke was fully dressed, the two made their way downstairs. The red head looked at the kitchen table. Daisuke finally got the picture. "Hey, wait! Miss Harada isn't here!" Kikyo smiled her knowing smile, hands behind her back, "I know. But now that I have your attention," She pulled a black robe out from behind her, tossing it on Daisuke, and fixing it so that it fit on him. It was a little big, but it'd do. 

Pulling her brother to the basement stairs she dragged him down. With the hood over his head, Daisuke could barely see where he was going. At the bottom of the stairs, Wiz jumped off Kikyo's shoulders, "Incoming, Mom!" She called out, shoving the boy towards their mother, in order for her to complete the ceremony. With her brother downstairs, Kikyo walked back up, Lelia wrapped around her neck. _I could go for some breakfast..._

"That wasn't funny, Kikyo." Daisuke stated, forty-five minutes later, after the ceremony, which Daisuke complained about because, one; there was no breakfast and two; he was almost late, which didn't make sense because he was _trying_ to be early. 

The brunette giggled, hand over her mouth, "It was plenty funny. Now, scoot!" She stated, tapping Daisuke's lower back as they jogged out the door. As they made their way down the street, Daisuke in a rush, Kikyo turned to the window over the door. Their mother waved, Wiz and Lelia sitting comfortably on the windowsill. "Make sure you're back here no later than twenty-seven seconds past 4:52 P.M., otherwise something bad might happen! I don't care if she _does_ agree to go out with you!”

Daisuke sputtered, removing the bread piece from his mouth, "H-how'd you know about that?"

Emiko gave a blunt reply, "I'm your mother. You can't hide these things from me. She's Risa Harada; one of the twins!" She replied, winking at the two of them.

The red head blushed the color of his hair, "No way!" he said, amazed at that his mother knew almost everything about his crush, and he didn’t know she even knew.

"She's the younger one, right?" Mom asked. Kikyo laughed and rolled her eyes at Daisuke's red face, pulling him along. 

 "You told her!" He accused, pointing a finger as they ran the streets to the train. Kikyo shrugged her shoulders, "Mom is _very_ persuasive." 

 

Two blurs of white and red passed through the outskirts of town as Daisuke ran and dragged his twin along the town heading to the train station in order for his plan to work out. "Daisuke are you sure about this? I mean just asking her today and all?" She asked, knowing Risa's feelings on her twin. But, as good a friend she was, Kikyo couldn't tell Daisuke.

"Of course I'm sure." He replied, confident as he kept his eyes ahead of him.

"Alright, if you say so..." She sighed and kept running, pulling her longer than needed to be brunette hair into a messy ponytail.

"Last call; loading all passengers into the train. The train will be leaving shortly," The announcer called, scanning the area. Once he caught sight of the twins, he smiled.

"Wait up!" Daisuke huffed, running faster before the train loaded and drove off.

"Oh, Daisuke, Kikyo you don't have to run – you won't miss this one. But, aren't you two a bit early today?" He asked as they showed their train passes. He approved and let them through, though the twins stopped briefly.

"Yeah we've got something to do." Daisuke said, rubbing the back of his head. Kikyo snickered, tapping his shoulders affectionately. "More like _you_ have something to do. He just dragged me along for the show," The announcer laughed, while he adjusting his hat, "Well, you two, have a good day." Kikyo smiled, giving him a wave, "We will. You, too,”

She guided him onto the train and towards the back, Daisuke sitting in a seat where he would be seen as soon as Risa got on the train. The twins sat side-by-side, Daisuke holding his bag in his lap as Kikyo held her next to her. The brunette twin glanced down at the mint-green envelope in his bag, and Daisuke looked to it too. 

The twins didn't look anything alike, save their nose and lip structure – courtesy of their mother. One would think that they weren't even twins upon seeing them, but they were, and had the last name to prove it. What other family in the city had the last name of 'Niwa'? Kikyo was graced with her parents brown hair, a mixture of both. Their father had dark brown hair, and their mother had honey brown hair. Kikyo was a mix, and called hers a 'double-milk-chocolate' since it wasn't completely honey, or dark brown. Daisuke had their father's spikey hair, but the color of ripe strawberry red, like their grandfather had in his younger days. Both had reddish eyes, but Daisuke's were more a cherry red than Kikyo's pale violet-red eyes. Overall, Kikyo looked like the more normal twin. But, Daisuke and his sister were liked equally.

Kikyo looked back at Daisuke as he tried to straighten out his hair. Placing a comforting hand on his wrist, she smiled, "You’re going to do fine." Daisuke smiled, taking a deep breath, before looking at Risa as the train pulled to a stop. Daisuke panicked. The train pulled up so that Risa got on at the middle of the train, rather than he normal spot in the back. "Hey, wait! That's the wrong door!" He argued standing and clutching his bag. The intercom went off again as Daisuke sat down, and Kikyo frowned, running a hand through her now straight locks again. 

"Please watch your step. The platform is being renovated for the time being. We hope there are no inconveniences."

Kikyo sighed turning her attention out the window, "Only one."

 

The train pulled at stop at Grand Station, the last stop and the center of town. Kikyo blinked as Daisuke tugged at her wrist. He looked at her, slightly worried as the rest of the passengers departed. "Are you alright, Kiky?" He asked, stopping and looked at his sister. She grinned, lightly shoving him off the train, "Perfect! Now, go get her, Dai!" She stated, watching as Daisuke nearly stumbled down the steps, blushing tomato red. Daisuke looked up, hearing Risa's voice. She was waving to a small brunette girl who was running, maybe to catch up to a parent, or run to school. Kikyo heard Daisuke gulp and she gave him thumbs up, in reassurance. Daisuke took one last breath and stepped up, "M-Miss Harada!"

When Daisuke turned back around, Kikyo dropped her hands to her sides. She frowned, slightly. She shouldn’t be giving Daisuke all this encouragement, especially when Risa didn’t feel that way towards Daisuke and Kikyo knew it, too. But, that had been a few months ago... Maybe Risa had a change of heart. _Yeah. That’s it – she had a change of heart. Daisuke will be fine,_ she thought to herself, giving herself reassurance.

Risa turned, confused, but smiled upon seeing her friends, the Niwa twins. Risa and her twin were good friends with Kikyo, which led Daisuke to create a crush on Risa. The four had become good friends upon all learning they were twins. Riku and Kikyo immediately bonded because of same sports they played. They were on the same field hockey team last year, so they had known each other beforehand.  Kikyo had quit at the start of the new school year, when she decided to take on dance instead. Then when Risa met Kikyo, the two became the best of friends. So, overall, the four twins were quite good friends. 

"Niwa!" She called out, happy to have spotted them. 

Daisuke stepped up, but underestimated how close the step was. Mid sentence, he fell forward, "Good morn-AH!" He caught himself mid-trip and did a cartwheel up the steps. Risa saw and reached out, dropping her bag to catch Daisuke's arm. Kikyo ran up the stairs, to try and balance out her brother from the back. Daisuke was at a loss for words. He blinked, Risa blinked. Risa was utterly confused – poor girl – and Daisuke was standing there like an idiot. Finally, after a pinch on the leg from Kiki, he found his voice. "I'm so sorry!"

The school was in sight. Risa and Kikyo walked side by side, Daisuke on Kiki's empty side. He was still apologizing for the event that happened ten minutes ago. And every time, Risa reassured him that everything was alright. Risa giggled, taking an extra step, "You don't have to keep apologizing – it's alright." She turned, smiling sweetly to Daisuke. He started to discreetly pull out the letter. "But, I like you that way, Niwa." Daisuke blinked a smiling forming on his face, while Kiki's emotions were opposite. 

"R-really?" Daisuke asked, hopefully.

"Really. You're so nice. You're a lot kinder than any other person I know. When I'm class assistant, you always offer to help me carry things, and you always take my place for cleaning duty."

Daisuke was still pulling out that letter, "Well, it's because... You know..."

"I really can't think of you than any other boy I know at school. In many ways you are my best friend in the world." She stated, smiling, completely oblivious. Kikyo turned at the sound of a soft pat on the ground. Risa noticed it too. She blinked, tilting her head to the side, "What's this?" She read the writing on the front, confused as to why it said her own name. Daisuke snapped from his trance, jumping forward and reaching to grab the letter. Once it was in his grasp, he jumped back to where Kikyo stood. 

"This? Oh this is nothing. It has your name on it because I like your name, Miss Harada. Yeah! I was practicing it. Yes, practice!" Daisuke stuttered, while Risa only continued to blink. As nice as Daisuke was, he did have his odd days. This must have been one of them. 

"Hey guys what's up?" A voice asked coming from the opposite direction. Kikyo turned, smiling at the familiar face. To herself, she gave a sigh. Good timing! Riku came at just the right time, saving the three from a very awkward moment.

"Oh, Riku!" Risa said, happy to see her sister. The brunette Harada moved over to Riku's bike, and pulled out two boxes from the basket.

"It's unusual seeing you two here. Niwa and Kikyo don't have morning practice like we do." Riku said

Risa walked to the Niwa's and held out the boxes. "These are for you, happy birthday, from me and Riku!" She stated, happily, and awaiting the reactions. 

Kikyo smiled, "Risa, Riku, you didn't have to get us anything!" She stated, but opened her box anyway. Inside was a silver chain, and on the chain was a jade pendant. Not only was jade Kiki's favorite gem, but it was also her middle name; which made her love it more. "Thanks, guys! Dai, what'd you get?" She asked, peering over his shoulder. His box was larger than hers, but Kiki didn't mind. She smiled, Daisuke seemed really happy with his gift.

"Riku told me that you liked to draw, so we went out and bought that for you. We hope its okay, Niwa." She stated, hands behind her back as she indicated to the charcoal and new sketchbook they had gotten him. Riku smiled, turning to Kiki. "And we know you like jewelry, and that your favorite is jade. So, we figured the pendant would be cool. And, I love the design! The way it's twisted is so cool, don't you think?" 

Kiki nodded as Risa helped to clasp together the silver chain. Once it was clasped tightly, Kiki smiled, hugging the twins in thanks. Daisuke smiled, and bowed briefly, masking his sorrow. Riku's watch beeped and the three looked to her. Risa and Riku turned to the Niwa's. "We have to go now; we'll see you in school!"

Kiki waved as the Harada twins departed. Once they were out of sight, she draped her arm over Daisuke's shoulder. "She cares, Dai.”

Daisuke sighed, leaning into her arm, "Just not the way I expected."

 

* * *

 

 

A hand came slamming down on Daisuke's desk, and an angry face was in his vision. Lazily looking to his friend, Daisuke sighed in response. 

"He's not dead, Saehara." Kikyo answered for him, one eye closed as she stared at the soon-to-be reporter. Arms uncrossed from her chest, Kikyo packed away the rest of her things, before walking a few short steps to Daisuke's desk, where he still sat, sulking. "Daisuke's in a tough position now. Give him a second."

"Well, snap out of it, Dai!" Saehara said, completely ignoring the brunette. She rolled her eyes and sat on the desk next to Daisuke's. 

Not many kids were left in the room. The teacher had gone, just a few minutes before class, and as far as Kikyo could see, Daisuke, Takeshi, Satoshi Hiwatari, and she were the only ones left in the room. When Kiki looked back to her brother, she blinked – Takeshi was holding him up by the shoulders, shaking him like mad, whilst rambling about something big happening that night. Kikyo blinked, eyes widening slightly. At the sound of a pencil dropping, Kiki looked back at Satoshi, catching his gaze for a brief second. He seemed interested in what Takeshi had to say. Hopping off the desk, she moved to the back, picking up the dropped pencil. She held it out to the bluenette, "Here. You dropped this." She stated, smiling sweetly to the boy. He blinked in confusion, turning his attention to the brunette before him. Reaching up, he took the pencil back, muttering a soft 'thanks' before returning to his book. 

Kikyo waved slightly as she walked back, but her smile fell within an instant of turning her back. Her smile was replaced by a frown, a curious look in her eye. The brunette blinked as Takeshi confronted her about coming with him to the 'big event'. Nodding her head, she shoved the boy back, her index finger on his forehead. "No way, Saehara. I've told you – I won't date you." Takeshi, once again bummed, frowned, but recovered quickly.

"Since I'm the reporter, you can take over my art room cleaning duties while I prepare for this ground-breaking story of mine!" Daisuke blinked, not at all wanting to clean up the art room. Takeshi sensed this and jumped to Daisuke, latching onto his back. "I'll get you a picture of _Ha-ra-da_!" When Daisuke seemed a little bit convinced, Saehara sweetened the deal, "An eight by ten!"

Just as Daisuke was about to agree, Kikyo slapped her hand down on Daisuke's desk. "No!" Takeshi's face fell, and so did Dai’s.

Frowning, Takeshi looked to the girl, "And why not, Miss _Ni-wa_?" He asked, hands on his hips as he stood in front of the desk now, in front of Kikyo.

"Daisuke has to get home early tonight. I'll take over your cleaning duty – but just this once. And no more bribing my brother!" Hands once again on her hips, the girl turned to her twin, "Tell mom I'll be a little late, but home before twenty-seven seconds passed 4:52 P.M.," She winked, "Got it?"

  

She swiped the card – twice. She knew something was wrong, but she didn’t connect it to the fact that her card was the wrong one. She had grabbed Daisuke's science lab card, instead of the art room card. Rolling her eyes, the brunette opened the keypad. She took a quick look around – seeing no one. She typed in '19843892' with record time, and the door beeped – it was open. She opened the art room door, and stepped in, but quickly turned back around. She nearly jumped, and let go of the door. It went swinging back to close, when the boy stepped forward, stopping it with his foot. With this sudden motion, the two found themselves in close proximity with each other – too close for Kikyo's liking. With a slight pink tinge crossing her cheeks, she took a step back, regaining her calm. "You shouldn't really sneak up on people like that, Hiwatari." She stated, turning her head away and pulling down her shirt, awkwardly. 

With his normal bored, emotionless tone, the baby-blue haired boy stared at her through large glasses, "Sorry." he continued to stare at her. As much as it was annoying, it was awkward. The brunette narrowed her eyes, slightly, breaking the silence. She turned away, flipping on the light, "Grab what you need and head home – I've got work to do. 

As if the fact was obvious, Hiwatari stepped in, letting the door close behind him, "I'm here for cleaning duty, too,"

Kikyo had picked up a dusting rag from the desk, and looked over her shoulder as Satoshi spoke, looking around slightly. Her eyes turned to the door, briefly, but she turned, ignoring her thought. She tossed the rag without warning; "Then get cleaning."

As she was erasing everything from the chalkboard, Satoshi moved boxes around. When he had finished that, he went to assist the smaller girl with the chalkboard. He noticed her height difference. Satoshi was the same height as Daisuke, and he noticed that Kikyo was a head shorter than him, and had to reach to wipe down the top of the chalkboard, even with the wooden extension she had. He watched in slight amusement as she stood on her tip-toes to reach the very top of the board. When she noticed his staring eyes yet again, she turned, an almost scowl on her face. "Done already?" When Satoshi nodded, no, she stood on flat feet, again. "Can you get the top? I can't reach – as you probably already saw.”

If anyone were to walk in and hear her last statement, one would wonder as to why the female was being so bitter to the handsome Hiwatari boy. Well, she wouldn't have a set answer – why would she give away her information, let alone her secret? – And in truth, she wasn't being so bitter. Well, her voice did have a harsh tone, but it was because he was just _staring_ at her. That was all he had been doing for the past half an hour. Every time Kiki looked over at him, he was staring at her with those big baby-blue eyes. It was getting annoying.

Satoshi stepped away from the board he was leaning on and reached out to grab the stick. His hand brushed against hers, and the rag fell to the ground. Kiki sighed, softly and went to pick it up. She bent down, and immediately went back up, clutching her forehead. Satoshi hadn't even realized he hit her with the stick, and looked at her with a slightly confused face as he stood straight again. She waved him off, and walked over to the covered paintings. She picked up three and started to bring them upstairs to the storage floor. 

When she came back down the stairs, she stopped halfway down, looking at the door. Someone should have come in by now. "Why hasn’t anyone else come?" She asked

Satoshi turned to her, but went back to cleaning the board, "I told them not to come," He stopped, setting the stick beside him and leaning on it. He watched as Kikyo came down the stairs. "I wanted to be alone with you.”

Kikyo blinked, eyes narrowing again. "Is that so?"

He looked at the paintings above, hanging on the walls, particularly the painting "" _Goddess Radin_ " by Giner." 

“You like the arts as much as I do. Not just paintings, but, what you do, Miss Niwa; dancing. I hear you're quite good. I wanted to know your take on different types." He turned back to her, slightly smiling. Kiki blinked at him, leaning against the chalkboard. "Are you free tonight?"

Kikyo laughed, lightly, looking at the painting. "Well, I'm flattered that you'd want to talk about my dancing," Actually, she was slightly flattered, but she had her suspicions. "But I'm afraid tonight isn't the best night. It's my birthday. I'm supposed to be home early so I can celebrate with my family."

Satoshi sighed, setting the stick and rag on the tray underneath the chalkboard. He turned to Kikyo, hand extended in a hand-shake gesture "That's too bad. Another time, then?"

The brunette stared at the hand briefly, but smiled lightly, extending her own hand. "Another time."

 

Kikyo sighed as she made her way to the train station. She had plenty of time to get home. It was only four-thirty, leaving her twenty-two minutes and twenty-seven seconds to get home. Yeah, she had plenty of time. 

Upon getting home, the brunette sighed; sliding her shoes off at the door. She had gotten home at four-fifty and sixteen seconds – giving her plenty of time to say hello to Grandpa and Mom, before having to prep Daisuke on his soon-to-be temporary career. The younger-twin sighed as she passed by sprung traps, and a few discarded banana peels which she stepped over. When she finally got to the kitchen door, she opened it. Daisuke had already set off all the traps, so she had nothing to worry about. But, she was prepped anyway. As soon as she opened the door, a large red boxing glove came her way. 

The brunette crouched to the ground and pushed up with her hands as the glove passed over her head. Once it was in front of her again, she pushed up, flipping backwards and kicking the glove out into the hallway. She landed gracefully on her feet, but didn't expect the sudden hug from her mother. “Ack! _Mom_!” Fighting to get away, Kiki fixed her hair, and stepped into the kitchen.

"Kikyo! That was even faster than Daisuke – how did you get through so fast?"

Kikyo stared blankly at her grandfather before pointing her thumb over her shoulder, "You didn’t reset the traps, Gramps."

When the sound of loud footsteps were the only thing heard, beside the constant and loud 'Mom, Mom, Mom' from a familiar red head, the three turned to the staircase, seeing Daisuke, kind of. He was taller, tanner skinned and with long violet hair. Kikyo blinked; had two minutes and eleven seconds passed that quickly? Apparently it did. Emiko, who seemed far too busy with the dishes, turned, blue gloves on her hands, extending to her elbows, "Oh, you're so handsome!"

Daisuke sighed, "That's not what I mean! I can't go to school looking like this! Is this is 'bad thing' you were talking about?" Finally, Daisuke's cherry gaze set on Kikyo, "How come nothing happened to Kikyo!"

Emiko winked, holding up a finger. "That's just the old Niwa genes kicking in." Scrubbing at a dish again, she called over her shoulder, "Take it away, Kiki!”

"Finally," She sighed hands on her hips, and then looked back to Daisuke. "For over three thousand years, Dark's power has been passed through the Niwa family. Since that time, each generation of Niwa males goes through a major transformation on their sixteenth birthday. Now it's your turn to inherit Dark's name Daisuke."

"How do you know so much about this and I don't?" Daisuke yelled, pouting as he stepped further into the kitchen. 

"This is the time for Dark to have an assistant. We’ve been trained since we were little in order for us to become our respective roles; you as Dark, and me as Dark's assistant. They used to call her the Phantom Sable. It's been one hundred and twenty years since the last Sable." She sighed, readying herself to tell another short story. "You see, every few generations in the Niwa family, twins are born: a male and a female. The male obviously inherits Dark's traits, while the female is trained to be Dark's assistant. I, as Sable, don't have another form like you do, but I use my own skills and have to hide my own face, whereas you just need to hide your alter-ego." She said

"But, I don't want to be a phantom thief. Change me back right now!" The red head complained

"Sorry we can't. I already sent out the warning letter that said 'Tonight at 11 PM we'll steal the Sacred Maiden!'" Emiko stated, walking into the kitchen, standing beside her daughter.

"No I won't do it! Kiki can go alone!" Dai yelled

"You'll do what you're told young man!" Grandpa yelled, making Daisuke flinch. "You've got no choice but to do it."

"And anyway you need the Sacred Maiden to change back," His twin stated, "So if you want to change back to normal you'll help me steal the Sacred Maiden."

Daisuke contemplated the situation. He _did_ need to change back if he ever wanted to show his face again. "Fine; I'll help." Wiz jumped onto his shoulder, cute as he was, making that 'kyuu' noise. Daisuke went to pet his head.

"Lelia," Kikyo said, and the white creature scurried up her outstretched arm, from the table. The ferret blinked with black eyes and wrapped herself around her master's neck, before scurrying down her back. Daisuke blinked, and when he reopened them, he saw black wings unfurling from his twins back. 

Daisuke watched this odd little display, and his eyes widened as the transformation hit his brain. "Whoa!"

Gramps turned to Daisuke after seeing his granddaughter complete a successful transformation with her familiar. "Put your hand over Wiz's forehead. He transforms into Darks wings." Daisuke did so and Wiz transformed. The red head – now violet head – jumped back slightly as the wings attached to his back automatically. He jumped back even more as Wiz 'kyuu'd’ again. 

"Kikyo. Before you leave put on you put on your mask." Emiko stated, smiling as she handed over a black mask – a mask from a Mardi gras or masquerade. Though, this mask had strings in the back to secure onto her face. 

Her mask was special. It had been engraved with a secret spell that had lasted two thousand years. The spell recognized Niwa blood through the skin and enabled the wearer to change their appearance. Kikyo, upon placing the mask on, had changed. Her hair was a short dark lavender pixie bob and her eyes took on a dark, emerald green glow. Her face seemed thinner and had a more rounded shape, though her voice kept the same pitch. When she placed the mask on, it blended into her skin, and acted as if there was no mask at all – and Kikyo didn’t even feel it on her face. Another plus, the mask enabled the Niwa user to use magic feathers, just as Dark was able to.

 

* * *

 

 

Two black-shrouded figures loomed over the museum that was holding the Sacred Maiden. They didn't really look suspicious, aside from the oversize _black_ wings, were dressed in all _black_ , had a random _black_ suitcase, and the female had a _black_ mask on – no, not suspicious at all.  

With the police swarming the building as they sat, Daisuke and Kikyo watched as lights homed in on the entire building – front and back – awaiting the arrival of the flying phantoms; Dark and Sable. And said two phantoms were on their way, eagerly awaiting the hopeful fun in stealing a rare and valued artifact. Well, Daisuke was a complete wreck, nervous he might get caught and his red hair would come back – therefore the police knowing who he and the Sable were. But, his twin kept reassuring him, for she was quite excited – giddy, one might say. She felt the adrenaline pulsing through her, the fact of sneaking around a museum and stealing something. Of course, their thieving was for the good of everyone, even if they didn't know it.

When word finally got out to the police that Sable and Dark had appeared, more officers came and started to swarm the entrance. _This is a predicament_ , Kikyo thought, blinking down at all the officers below her. She gasped, eyes widening as she thought she saw a glimpse of blue – but when she looked back, she saw nothing. Turning to Daisuke, she tossed him the suitcase. "Head inside, I'll draw the officers away. Be careful!" She hissed in a hushed tone, but not like anyone below could hear them. Daisuke, more like Dark, nodded and flew off to find an open spot to the museum. Kikyo, or Sable, on the other hand, swooped to the ground.

Kikyo swooped low to the ground, causing a large rush of air to pass over a group of guards. The teen smirked as she saw the detective – Takeshi’s father. Flying back his way, Kiki raised herself high enough in the air to not be caught with a net, which seemed to be the police’s favorite weapon tonight. Hands in front of her and shaping a small orb, the teen smiled, seeing a small orb or light appear in her hands. As it grew, she started to lower herself, and when it got to about the size of a baseball, she released the energy. Black feathers erupted from the orb, and the lights were covered, enabling the thief to get away, and hopefully cause a little of distress and gain some time.

Upon getting into the museum, Kikyo looked out a window. The feathers were starting to die down, but it wasn’t a big deal – both Daisuke and Kikyo were in the building. And no one seemed to have followed them in.

“Looks like we – huh?” Turning, Daisuke looked to the entrance to the room. Footsteps were getting louder, and a faint light was growing larger and brighter. Some officers must have found their position. Softly cursing to herself, Kikyo dragged Daisuke behind a pillar. When he ran off, Kikyo went to stop him, but he winked, and continued on his way.

Detective Saehara came into the room, with a handful of police officers. “A Team covers the back entrance – B Team head to the rooftop. Damn, the emergency lights won't turn on!” He exclaimed, obviously very pissed at the fact he didn’t catch the thieves yet. He shined the flashlight over to the stand, which was supposed to be holding the Sacred Maiden. Kikyo followed the gaze, and even she was surprised to not see the statue.

“Damn! How did they get in here without setting off the alarms?” He asked himself

“Detective!” Kikyo turned her head, just barely being able to see an officer come in the room, clutching his arm. His head was ducked down and she could barely see his face. When the detective rudely asked him to report, the officer slightly stumbled. “I’m sorry! It seems both Dark and Sable have escaped – and through the main entrance!”

Infuriated, Detective Saehara took off, “The main entrance! Not possible! Everyone to the main entrance hall!” When the remaining officers started to leave, Kikyo saw that the injured officer hadn’t left. Confused, she came out slightly. When he smirked, and made a ‘humph’ noise, she jumped back, holding a black feather. He removed his hat, showing long purple locks. Kikyo could have laughed. “Clever. 

Daisuke snapped his fingers, and the Sacred Maiden was revealed from behind a veil of black feathers. “Very clever,” Kikyo smirked.

Daisuke went forward and unlocked the code to the maiden. Getting the suitcase from behind the stand, the thief grabbed the statue carefully and placed it within the suitcase. At first, Kikyo didn’t think it’d fit. The statue was far too bulky for the suitcase, but when she placed it in and closed the lid, she was surprised to see it fit inside, and even closed, looking as if nothing was inside. “Huh. Like Mary Poppins.” She said, and the two shared a soft laugh.

  

“Congratulations – just like my old friend.” 

The twins gave a quick turn, and were both surprised to see familiar baby-blue hair and the body of a familiar student in the doorway. 

Smirking, and arms casually crossed, Hiwatari looked to them, just like old friends. “Nice to meet you, though, we’ve met before, haven’t we?” With that, Satoshi made a break for it, and ran at Daisuke. The teen, not seeing him coming, didn’t have time to react, and was tackled to the ground by the boy. Kikyo placed the suitcase on the ground, and ran at the boys. Satoshi had Daisuke successfully pinned to the ground, and Kikyo ran at him, and slid across the floor, shifting Satoshi’s legs and the boy’s grip loosened enough for Daisuke to get away. He ran over to the case at Kikyo’s command, and headed into the shadows. Satoshi, regaining composure, looked hurriedly through the room for Dark. When he saw Kikyo trying to make a break for it, the baby-blue haired teenager made a dash for her, tackling her to the ground. She struggled under his grip, and tried to throw her arms up, but he had pinned her down. He smirked down at her as she glared and cursed at him. She tried to move her legs up in an effort to kick him off, but he pressed his whole body down on her own – she was crushed – he had her. 

Kikyo fussed and tried to shift, moving her body from side to side, but she couldn’t move very far with Satoshi on top of her. The teen merely chuckled as he watched the sixteen year old girl beneath him struggle. “You’re losing your touch – I thought you’d be better than this,” he mocked, moving his face closer to hers to inspect it. When he got close to her face, close enough to kiss, he smirked. But his smirk faded as fast as it came, and he cringed, loosening his grip as he cringed at some kind of pain.  “...no... Stop it!” he hissed. Kikyo took this chance to get away, but Satoshi was quick, and grabbed her wrist, pulling her back. 

The girl bit her lip, annoyed. This was getting ridiculous. Someone else was going to get here before she and Dark could make their escape – and she wasn’t about to let that happen. Batting her eyes, the brunette definitely caught Satoshi’s attention. He stared at her wide eyed for a moment as she sneakily moved in for the kill. She parted her lips, and blew on Satoshi’s, making him eye her lips. Kikyo saw him visibly shiver, meaning her idea was working. Aiming her eyes back at Satoshi’s, they flashed emerald in the visible light. His jaw dropped, slightly, and Kikyo felt his hands losing grip on her wrists.  

She shot up and closed the space between them.

Kikyo opened her eyes to see if she still had Satoshi on the hook, which she did. But before she could shove him off and get back to Dark, the brunette twin noticed something different. Satoshi’s hair was...longer? And it was gray. Knowing all too well and very surprised, Kikyo gasped, forgetting she was kissing Satoshi and he growled hungrily, no longer sounding nor acting like him. The grip on Kikyo’s wrists was back, and she struggled to get away from the Hiwatari boy. Frantically looking about the room, Kikyo feared that Dark had already left. Though she was happily wrong as she saw Dark’s spiked violet hair and his face as he grabbed her arm, pulling her away from the teen. Satoshi, on the other hand, was now writhing on the ground, his hair shifting from the familiar light blue to a gray-gold color. 

“No...!” Kikyo muttered, as Dark dragged her away. When Satoshi’s hair finally returned to its normal baby blue color, Dark and Kikyo were already at the window. Dark smirked, holding the case for the Sacred Maiden with one hand, and holding onto Sable’s arm with the other. “We’ll be taking the Sacred Maiden, Commander,” his smirk deepened and he stepped back onto the window ledge, before jumping out.  Kikyo followed suit, though she wasn’t paying attention, and a large piece of glass sliced through her arm. She held on to the cut, as she flew beside Dark, and only looked back once to see Satoshi standing in the museum window – a smirk on his handsome face.

Sighing, the teen caught up with Dark.

 

He wasn’t angry or anything – he actually seemed to ignore the fact that Kikyo had kissed the Commander, and nearly gotten herself stuck there. In fact, he seemed playful about being out and about.

“Ahh! It feels good to be out again!” he sighed, breathing in the night air. Taking a peek back at his black clad partner, he gave her a cheesy, yet charming grin. “Well, well. I forgot about you, Sable. Or, have you changed your name again?” He laughed, shifting his weight so that he flew beside the young girl. Seeing her distant expression, he looked her over. Since this was his first night, he was really getting a look at Kikyo – he had only seen her through the eyes of Daisuke – which wasn’t much of a view. Looking her over still, he spotted a deep cut across her right arm. Blinking, he moved in to inspect it. Kikyo didn’t seem to be paying much attention to him, but when he got right up close and in her face, she blinked at him – confused. “What are you...?”

He grabbed her arm, and inspected the cut, which still had glass in it. “You should have Emik...I mean your mom check that out.” He said, fixing his slip up about Kikyo’s mother. She laughed a bit, holding onto her arm, and stared ahead. They were coming up on their house – she could see it on the banks. But before they could get there, they had to pass over the Harada house. She saw Dark looking at the oversized mansion, he flinched, grabbing his shoulder. “Augh... I might need to set down for a minute.” He muttered, probably more to himself than anyone. Kikyo noticed and offered to take the Sacred Maiden case back while Dark rested for a minute, even though the house wasn’t too far off. But, she didn’t complain, and took the case and flew off.

Upon getting home, Kikyo sighed, stepping into the back yard, where her mother and grandfather were waiting for her. Emiko wondered where Daisuke was, or Dark, and Kikyo replied that he had to set down and wasn’t too far behind. 

“Oh, Kiki, what happened to your arm?” Her grandfather asked, spotting the dripping wound. 

Kikyo had nearly forgotten about it, and tried to remember what happened. “Oh, I snagged it on a piece of cut glass. No biggie.” She said, faking a smile to try and hide her exhaustion and nerves.

When the three started to head into the house, Kikyo sighed before going to strip of her mask. The teen blinked.

 

Her mask was missing. ****


	2. Excitement

“Ow, _Mom_!” Kikyo cried, as her ever caring mother put a cloth dripping with hydrogen peroxide on the deep, still bleeding gash on her arm. The young brunette was gripping Daisuke’s hand, who winced as his twin squeezed his hand tight, and watched as she whimpered because of the stinging liquid. Said red head had gotten home a few minutes earlier, and as soon as he did, Emiko and Daiki had to go to the basement and complete a sealing ceremony for the Sacred Maiden. And, as they did this, Kikyo whimpered and moaned in pain as they left her at the kitchen table, bleeding, and with hydrogen peroxide dripping down her arm. 

“First you forget me, and then you, _ow_ , drench my arm in peroxide!” Wincing again, the two twins sighed as the peroxide and blood was cleaned up, and Emiko now wrapped a gauze bandage around Kikyo’s arm. “What kind of mother are you?”

“A good one,” Emiko squeezed the gauze, causing it to apply pressure to the wound, though not letting it bleed again. “Now, shush!” She teased, before returning her attention to her daughter’s arm. Kiki let go of Daisuke’s hand, and he rubbed it as she turned, and smiled at him, a little sadly. “Sorry, Dai.... It hurt... _A lot_.”

“I guessed as much,” He smiled, cheerful as ever. “Don’t worry about it!”

Kikyo blinked. Her brother was so much stronger than she was. Not physically stronger, but emotionally. The kid was able to keep everything together, and not let his emotions bother him. The only time his emotions bothered him was when something was really bad and it made him hurt, again, not physically, but in his heart.

“Daisuke...”

“Okay! Time for bed! You’ve got school tomorrow, no sleeping in – I don’t care if you are successful thieves!”

The twins snapped their attention to their mother, pouting and glaring. “MOM!”

“It’s two in the morning, you expect us to wake up in four and a half hours to get ready?” Kikyo protested, as Daisuke dropped his head, sighing and whimpering.

Emiko winked, looking at her darling children. “That’s right, now off to bed! Shoo!”

 

OOOoooOOOooOOOoOOOoOOO

 

Kikyo sighed, sinking into the murky, bubbly water. It was three in the morning, she couldn’t sleep. Her lips tingled weirdly. She had tried and tried, for an hour, but sleep wouldn’t come. She was exhausted, _hell yes_ , but she couldn’t sleep. _I’ll regret it in the morning, I know that,_ she thought, resting her head on a folded towel on the edge of the tub. Her hair was pulled up into a messy bun, and she had toe dividers on her feet, with freshly painted baby blue polish on her toes, as well as her fingernails. Closing her eyes, Kikyo went over what her day was like. _It was one hell of a birthday, I’ll say..._

The morning started off good. She was excited – Dark was coming and she could finally meet him (she had been dying to since Daiki told her the story) – so she woke Daisuke up extra early, as instructed. He wasn’t very happy, especially after she told him Risa was there and she really wasn’t – she woke him up, at least. Then the fiasco with Risa happened, which she wasn’t happy about, but she saw it coming. School went by slow, but only because she was looking forward to later on that night. Then she had cleaning duty, which she took over for Daisuke, and that was interesting, especially since it was her and Hiwatari. School ended, then Daisuke became Dark (partially) and they went to get the Sacred Maiden. They ran into Hiwatari, and it got difficult.

Bringing a hand to her lips, Kikyo felt her face go hot. She had nearly forgotten about her sudden kiss with Satoshi. Well, she hadn’t forgotten it, she just tried to. Biting her lip, the brunette lowered her hand, and dropped her head back again, looking at the ceiling. Today was the closest she had been to Satoshi Hiwatari. _Ever_. She had picked up his pencil near the end of the school day. He had been the only one to show up for cleaning duty, which just so happened to be the same day that she took over Daisuke’s, no, _Saehara_ ’s, job. Then he turned out to be the Commander, which she already knew, though was hoping to avoid him, and he pinned not only her down, but Daisuke as well, which led her to kissing him.

And now, she couldn’t get him out of her head. It wasn’t even that good of a kiss! She didn’t even _like_ Satoshi Hiwatari. He was just a classmate – and a classmate that didn’t even need to _be_ in school! He didn’t talk to anyone, he was an over achiever at school, his adoptive father pushed him to do everything, he was the smartest kid in school and made everyone _know_ it, and he was Dark, Daisuke and her enemy! (And she only knew all this by reading his file, doing a little background check and a family tree search) Gasping, Kiki realized something. _It’s like I’m stalking him. I know almost_ everything _about him from his file. His birthday is August 20_ _th_ _making him seventeen years old. He was given up by his mother, Rio Hikari, at the age of three, and was adopted months later by Kei Hiwatari. He went through school at an alarming rate, and graduated Lagoon University at the age of thirteen. He became Commander of Police when he was fourteen, and has been searching for the Phantom Thief Dark ever since, as well as his companion, Sable, if she were to show up._  

“Oh, my _God_!” She rushed, sitting up quickly and making the water slosh out of the tub. “No,” she gave a short laugh, as to reassure herself. “I _only_ know this because I want to keep Daisuke, Dark and myself safe. No other reasons.” She said, and with that, drained the tub, grabbed a towel, and got dressed for bed.

She was finally tired.

 

OOOoooOOOooOOOoOOOoOOO

 

The day started off as any other. The sun was shining through partially opened windows. Bed sheets were messy from a restless night and Kikyo Niwa was passed out, lying on her stomach, half awake.

“What a night,” she heard the soft voice of someone, half complaining, half asleep, and a little bit amused.

The brunette blinked sleepily. Was Daisuke complaining as he came to wake her up? She peeled her eyes open once she decided she should wake up. Upon opening her eyes, the twin saw blue-green walls. She must have been facing the wrong way, since she didn’t see Daisuke. As she turned, the brunette remembered that she didn’t have blue-green walls. Her walls were a dark maroon. 

Her eyes shot open, now recalling the voice that didn’t sound like her brothers.

Kikyo was staring at pale ivory skin, _bare_ skin nonetheless. Feeling came back into her body. She was sore all over and she felt her arms draped over bare skin. Looking up hesitantly, she saw baby blue hair. Once the person being watched noticed that he had eyes staring at him, he looked down to the brunette hugging his stomach. 

“S-S-Satoshi!?” She asked in bewilderment as she swiftly removed her grip on him and scooted back, nearly falling off the bed. She pulled his bed sheets up over herself upon noticing her nude body.  She blushed a tomato red color and watched as Satoshi grinned a bit. He scooted closer to her, and since she had no room left on the bed, Kikyo stayed put.

Feeling a little awkward and noticing her blush now extending to her ears and chest, Kikyo tried to grin sheepishly. “U-uhm... Satoshi what happened?” she asked timidly as he stared at her. 

Satoshi blinked before sighing and sitting back against the headboard once more. Kikyo wouldn’t deny that she was disappointed he moved away. She liked his closeness and wished it would come back. “You don’t remember?” He asked, more to himself than her. He sighed again and looked at the ceiling. Was it for the better or worse that she didn’t remember?

“Well...Yeah. That’s why I’m asking...” she replied trying to think back on what happened. 

Well, yesterday was Sunday so Kikyo went to the outdoor market to get fresh produce with her mom. There was no school, so after that she had the day free to herself until nine o’clock when she and Dark were scheduled to steal the Crimson Crystal from a local jewel collector on the south side of town. “Dark and I needed to steal the Crimson Crystal from the... Hakumei household, I think it was...” she looked to Satoshi for reassurance and he nodded. Things were coming back to her, but slowly. “Hm, I think we ran into you... Then Krad came along. I remember I had to fight him as Dark grabbed the crystal...” 

With her finger on her chin, Satoshi thought she looked cute, and he didn’t really want to sit around and wait for her to put the pieces together. Climbing back over to her, Satoshi pulled her more onto the bed. Looming over her, Satoshi’s half asleep half alert face was the only thing she could see and the petite brunette blushed. “Krad did attack you, and you were injured. You told Dark to get away since you would hold Krad off, but he still attacked you. That’s when I intervened.” Satoshi’s hands were placed firmly on each side of Kikyo’s head and he was only covered with the sheet from his hips down. 

This gave Kikyo a good look at his body. He...wasn’t what she expected at all. He was muscular – not like overly muscular that it was gross, but the perfect mix of muscle that fit the body of a seventeen year old. _It must be from all the times he’s chased Dark and me. He_ does _have to avoid obstacles... Then again, I’m sure he has to work out to keep up with Dark._

“You fell into water and almost drowned. I saved you and brought you back here.” Kikyo blinked, back to reality. Satoshi...saved her? Why would he do that?

“Why did you save me? Aren’t I an obstacle for you to get to Daisuke? If you had the chance, why didn’t you just let me drown?”

Satoshi buried his face in her neck and hair, nuzzling her softly before kissing up her neck to her ear. “Do you _really_ think I would let my own girlfriend _drown_?” he asked and Kikyo gasped softly. She was his girlfriend? Her heart beat a bit faster when she thought of that and when he said that word. She kind of liked it.

Ignoring that for just a moment, Kikyo blinked. “What about Krad? Doesn’t he want me dead?”

Satoshi sighed. “I wasn’t exactly clear. I may have intervened and tried to get out, but Krad wouldn’t let me. _He_ was the one who saved you and brought you back here. I asked him not to leave you on the side of the road.” Kikyo blinked again. That was...so out of character for Krad. But, she was touched at his attempt to keep her safe.

Satoshi nuzzled her neck again, and then kissed her cheek, and then her lips. It was a short but sweet kiss and Kikyo continued with her interrogation. “Wait, so I came back here and I’m obviously alive. What else happened?”

He was back to kissing her neck again, and the boy smirked. **Ah. Now we get to the good part**. He was wondering why she didn’t address the fact that they were both _naked_ earlier. But, oh well. “You haven’t put the pieces together yet, I see.” Kikyo blinked. What pieces? Her cheeks flushed again as Satoshi’s left hand supported himself and his right hand softly caressed her collarbone, then lower, between her breasts. She closed her eyes softly at his touch, and moved against him as he started to move away. Satoshi raised an eyebrow; a little excited she still wanted him to touch her. _I guess she doesn’t remember after all._

He moved his finger lower and lower and he circled his finger around her belly button, earning a soft giggle from her as she arched her back up, letting her stomach brush against his own. Satoshi smiled lightly, before giving her a soft kiss on the lips. Her eyes were still closed, and as he pulled away he saw a look of pure pleasure on her face. He rested his hand on her right thigh. Giving her another short kiss, he shivered as she snaked her arms over his lower back. 

He gave a sharp grab at her thigh and Kikyo opened her eyes, glaring a little. She was in such a good state of mind... His touch felt so good, and then he had to go and grab her. “Ouch! What the-!!”

She stopped as she realized she was looking into a pair of beautiful, golden eyes. Those eyes did not belong to Satoshi Hiwatari. And that golden hair did not belong to him either. “K-Krad!?”

Krad smirked. “Do you _now_ remember all the fun we had last night?”

The brunette screamed.

 

OOOoooOOOooOOOoOOOoOOO

 

“ _Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaake uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuup, Kikyoooooooooooooo_!”

Kikyo screeched and shot up from her bed, scaring Daisuke off the staircase in the meantime. She was covered in sweat and she was breathing so heavy she thought she was having a panic attack. Daisuke relaxed once he saw Kikyo stop breathing so heavy and he raised an eyebrow at her. “What’s with you?” He asked as Kikyo plopped back down on her bed.

 “Kikyooooo.”

Groaning, the young girl tossed a pillow at her brother. Today, it was his turn to wake her up early. He was standing next to her bed, holding the tossed pillow in his hands. When his sister didn’t reply, Daisuke rolled his eyes and turned around to her desk, computer and shelves. She hadn’t cleaned up the area in a while – it was messy, with homework strewn about, books half opened and propped up on the wall, her laptop was dead because she hadn’t charged it, and there were manila folders on her desk. Curiosity getting the better of him, Daisuke tossed the pillow back, not realizing he hit his sister in the face as she was getting up. Blinking lazily and tiredly, she moved the pillow and looked at the clock. It was six in the morning. She had to get ready for school. She had to put her dream aside for now, concentrate on school and... _Get those folders away from her brother_!

“Daisuke!” She shouted, jumping up and grabbing the folders from his hands. The red head looked confused at her, and frowned. Usually she was very open – why was she hiding this from him? Slightly hurt, Daisuke looked to Wiz and Lelia who bounded into the room. Kikyo sighed at her brother’s face, and tried to give him an explanation. “It’s not a big deal Dai, they’re just papers. Mom and Grandpa wouldn’t want you to see them, anyway.” She said, herself hurt by Daisuke’s expression, but he would have to be alright with it, until she told him what those folders were. He sighed, but cheered right back up again as Wiz hopped onto his head. “Okay, well, I made toast! It’s on the table, come and get some!” Kikyo blinked, but smiled, nodded her head and watched as Daisuke walked down her loft stairs and out of the room, closing the door behind him. Sighing, she looked at the papers as she sat back down on her bed. They were files about the Hikari family, the Hiwatari family, Satoshi Hiwatari and Krad Hikari. Daisuke couldn’t know that Satoshi was Krad, yet. He’d find out sooner or later.

The brunette was downstairs ten minutes later, dressed in her school outfit and fixing her hair so it was bouncy and curly, and in two perfect pigtails. Smiling to her mother and grandpa, she gave them both cheek-kisses and a big sloppy kiss for Daisuke on his cheek as well. The red head twin groaned and wiped his cheek, blushing as he grabbed another slice of toast. Kiki grabbed her bag from near the door, and grabbed a slice of toast as well, before the two were ushered out. 

Saehara was first to greet the twins when they walked into the room. He was so excited, and was bustling as he explained the Phantom Thief’s appearance. He had been writing article after article about it, and wouldn’t stop until Dark and Sable were captured. Everyone had heard about Dark and Sable, and how they were so cool. Girls couldn’t stop gawking, especially Risa, who came up to Kikyo as soon as she spotted her, and babbled on and on and on about how handsome he was and ‘just because he’s a thief, doesn’t mean he’s bad’ and such. Kikyo giggled with Ritsuko, though the other girl did gawk as well. Kikyo even heard a few boys talking about the Phantom Sable. She heard things along the lines ‘she’s hot, dude!’ and ‘Dark’s so lucky!’ which made her giggle to herself.

It was nice to hear everyone gawking and talking about Dark and Sable, but their appearance was a week ago, and the duo had come back four times to steal something, didn’t get caught and came back again. People didn’t know when to stop talking about them, and they all couldn’t get enough – I mean, who wouldn’t? They only come around every forty years.

The first few classes had gone by quickly and Kikyo found herself completely bored, but her mind kept lingering from school…to him. It wouldn’t stop and she would think of him for a while, realize what was happening, then have a mental freak out and return to her studies, only to think once again of Satoshi Hiwatari. A few times, she had even caught said boys gaze, which made her feel even more uncomfortable, which made the situation worse, which made the blue-haired boy smirk, for some reason or another.

When lunch came around, classrooms emptied and students filed into the school courtyard, lunch room and field to eat lunch. It was a forty-five minute period, giving students plenty of time for student to socialize and eat. It was then that Satoshi approached the brunette Niwa.  Kikyo, Risa, Ritsuko and Manna were walking down the hall, lunch bags in hand as they went to the courtyard to eat where they always did – on the bleachers to watch the boys practice for whatever. Risa and the other girls usually got a kick out of it, but Kikyo just thought it was amusing. Riku for some reason wasn’t walking with them; she had said she needed to do something else. 

Risa, Ritsuko and Manna all stopped, giggled and blushed at the handsome Hiwatari boy, but got even more joy when they found out he was there to see Kikyo. Hiwatari, smooth as ever, was leaning against a wall in the cafeteria right before the doors to the outside, where nearly the entire room could see them. And no doubt, the entire room had their eyes on them – Hiwatari was a hot item in the junior year. He was the most wanted boy in their grade, and he wouldn’t date anyone. He didn’t have time, nor did he really want any, which were some of the many excuses he had given various girls (some not even from Azumano High School). 

Hiwatari gave a slight, charming nod to the others, though he was really interested in the Niwa. “Ladies,” he spoke, smooth and charming, just what she’d expect.

“Hello, Hiwatari,” Risa sang as she giggled and tapped her friends arm. Kikyo sighed – she really didn’t want to have anything to do with him now. When Hiwatari gave them ‘a look’ Risa noticed, giggled some more and decided to abandon her fellow twin. “Hey, Kikyo, we’ll meet you outside, okay? Or, we’ll just see you in class.” And with another, lingering giggle, Risa took off with two other teens in tow. That left Satoshi Hiwatari and Kikyo Niwa in the doorway together, being stared at by the junior and senior class – much to her dislike.

“Can I help you?” After a long awkward silence, Kikyo needed to break it for fear of more awkwardness and fear of her own thoughts. Her eyes darted around the room. From her peripheral vision, she saw Risa peering in the window at her good friend, eager to see what was happening. The girls in the lunch room were eyes Kiki as well, some giving glares, while others looked close to tears

“Happy birthday,” he said, not really bothering to add much emotion into the phrase. Kikyo coked an eyebrow, about to say it was yesterday, but he walked to her, quickly and handed her a small black box tied together with a see through green bow. She blinked at him, and hesitantly accepted the gift, though all the while had a nice, bright smile on her face – a true smile. For the moment, she forgot she and Hiwatari were complete enemies and accepted his gift as any teen in their right mind would do. She untied the ribbon and opened the box, to see a beautiful green bracelet on a black cloth-like ribbon. It was pretty – and she did love green. “Is this…?”

“Yes, jade.” He stated, arms crossed once again as Hiwatari returned to the safety of his wall. Pulling it up and out of the box, Kikyo looked as it was caught in the light perfectly and shined like she had never seen a bracelet do before. “Would you help me?” she asked, offering her wrist and the bracelet for Satoshi.

The bluenette blinked, obviously not expecting this reaction from the younger Niwa. He hesitated a moment as Kikyo held out the bracelet to him, her wanting him to help her clasp it. Satoshi nodded, and pushed off the wall once again, and began to close the space between them, whilst taking the bracelet from her delicate fingers. One girl squealed in protest as Satoshi neared the young Niwa, and Satoshi inwardly smiled. Something about being a heartthrob just made him feel powerful. Either that or it was Krad’s need to be powerful. Once he finished clasping the bracelet, he took a small step back as Kikyo admired her new charm. It felt...oddly good to see her happy at the bracelet. She didn’t feign interest, as he saw, which made him feel slightly good inside, which was not his intention, which made him a little confused. A short, cynical laugh broke into his thoughts, Satoshi made a face, which made Kikyo look at him oddly, though he paid her no attention.

 **Master Satoshi,** Krad mocked **I think you are becoming infatuated with this girl. Since that lovely kiss she gave you a week ago, you haven’t been able to stop thinking of her.** Krad gave a sigh filled with mockery and greed. Satoshi could tell he wanted to get his hands on Kikyo and even that made the Hiwatari boy angry. **Did you see the way she parted her lips? She was just waiting for you to kiss her, she was asking for it.** His taunting was getting annoying. Growling in the back of his mind, Satoshi glared at Krad, whom gave a laugh in reply. **Ah, you should have let me out, Master Satoshi. I would have been able to get her really going. Wouldn’t you have liked that?**

 _Shut up, Krad. Get out of my head,_ Satoshi bit back, and to his surprise, Krad retreated into the back of his mind with one more laugh. Krad had been the one so eager to get out that night as Kikyo kissed him. Satoshi wouldn’t deny that he enjoyed the kiss. Krad had quite enjoyed the young girl’s short chance at seducing his dear Satoshi. It was so entertaining to watch as she bat her eyelashes and parted her lips, as if daring him to get closer and how Master Satoshi reacted when she kissed him, growling hungrily.

 _You’re sick, Krad. Shut up!_ Satoshi growled before not hearing any more of Krad’s thoughts

“... _Saaaaatoshiiii_.” Kikyo repeated for the third time. In a hushed tone, she had been trying to get his attention as he stared off into space, making a face once before relaxing. Said bluenette finally reacted; he looked up, blinked and took a moment to regain his composure. “Forgive me,” he replied and began to walk away. Kikyo blinked and followed after him as he left the lunchroom and walked back to the junior locker area. Once the two got into the hallway, away from eager eyes and glaring girls, Satoshi stopped, making Kikyo bump into him. With that, she lost her balance, slightly and the box dropped to the ground. The golden-green tissue paper fell out, and wrapped within it was a familiar mask – her mask. Kikyo glared at the ground.

Clever, Hiwatari. Very, very clever.

 

* * *

 

_Dark set down on the Harada’s balcony, and as soon as he did the older twin screamed and jumped back. Panicking only slightly, Dark ran up to her and covered her mouth. “Quiet! Someone will hear you-!” He was cut off as she pulled away and screamed again. Dark grabbed her arms, trying to pull her into his chest and get her to shut up. “Hey, hey! Stop!” He whispered harshly, before he leaned down and covered her lips with his._

_Riku stared in horror. Dark. Phantom Thief Dark was kissing her. She kept staring, not sure what to do. Then Dark pulled away, but it wasn’t Dark. It was...Daisuke Niwa!?_

_As soon as Dark was off her balcony, Riku ran to the bathroom and ran her face under cold water. She was kissed by Dark, though she was thinking of Niwa. As she was drying her face off, Risa entered. “Did you hear? I’ve found him, Riku. Phantom Thief Dark!”_

Since then, Riku couldn’t get that night out of her head. It seemed everyone had issues with it, though they didn’t know. Kikyo was obsessed with Satoshi, Riku was obsessed with Daisuke, Risa was obsessed with Dark and Satoshi was nearing obsession though denying that he was interested in Kikyo. Everyone was going crazy in their own minds. Riku was sitting in class, three rows away from Daisuke, and she was constantly scribbling said redheads name in her notebook, then erasing it as if nothing happened. This was driving her crazy that she was thinking of him so much. She didn’t even really know him all that well, other than what Kikyo said of him. But, now things were different. She was thinking of him, and her lips tingled each time she did.

Lunch came rolling around and before Risa could attack her with things about Dark, Riku took another hallway to the lunch room and near the hallway where she saw Daisuke go to lunch from. She would intercept him, and look at him closely. If she could stand being near him for just a few moments, she was over her obsession. If not...then, well, we’ll see. And, since she had the chance, she would talk to him about Risa – her obsession with Dark was a little frightening. She walked quickly through the halls, curving around sophomores standing in the halls as she followed the red head. She would pull him into a nearby closet or empty classroom, and there she would study him.

She ran by as Daisuke was stopped by a junior by the name of Miyamoto, and Riku took her chance to sneak by him and into a closet near the lunch room. No one was around, and through the window, she could see Kikyo and Satoshi talking, and Risa peering in the window.

Shutting the door behind her, Riku stared out and waited for Daisuke. Once she saw the red spikes of his hair, she opened the door, grabbed his arm, and pulled him in, shutting the door behind her. “Don’t scream, it’s only me! I had a few questions for you,” She said, glaring as she pulled her face closer to his. Daisuke blushed the color of his hair and made to step back, but was blocked by the wall. “U-uhm, Miss Harada, what are you doing?” He asked quietly, afraid he might anger her. She sighed and stepped back – she was doing well so far – “I was inspecting you.” She stated, but before she could look at him more, Dark’s kiss flashed through her memory and she flailed. “Aah! Uhm, I mean. _Ah_! So, Risa has been obsessed with this Dark guy ...” Daisuke flailed, the image now popping into his mind. “D-Dark! Really? I had no idea.”

The image flashed in Riku’s mind again. “Eep! B-but didn’t she ask you to go to one of his things with you?” She asked, eyes closed to try and get rid of the image. It was no use, it stuck for longer and she opened her eyes to see Daisuke blushing. “W-well, yes, b-b-but...” he trailed off, and Riku sighed. She stopped blushing and calmed herself down; Daisuke seemed to have done the same. “I’m sorry for grabbing you, Niwa; I just get worried about Risa. She’s gotten so obsessed with him... It’s really weird.”

Daisuke felt a mental sweat drop fall down his head. This was certainly an odd encounter... “Well, I’m sure she’ll find him boring after a while and give up.” He reasoned, and Riku sighed settling with that idea for now. “Yeah...” She nodded her head and reached for the door, slowly opening it and letting Daisuke head out first. “Sorry about that, again,” She blushed a little and blinked, her blush going away. Behind Daisuke...there was an interesting scene. Riku’s blush came back tenfold and Daisuke blinked, before turning around to see. “Wh-aaahhh!” he screeched and jumped back, blushing out of anger, not embarrassment. “K-K- _Kikyo_ a-and H- _Hiwatari_!?”


	3. Spellbound

Kikyo laughed; half like the couldn’t believe it and half surprised he hadn’t opened up their conversation with the mask. “So, I see you’ve found me out.” Reaching down to grab it, she stuffed it into her lunch bag before anyone saw it. “I’m sure you had ideas about me from the beginning though. This mask falling off didn’t help much either, I suppose.” Satoshi hadn’t said anything yet, and he simply stared down at her, arms crossed, a slight smirk on his face. 

“So. What now?” She asked though didn’t give him any room to reply as she kept speaking. “Its not as if I don’t know all about you, _Hikari_.” Satoshi flinched and Kikyo gave a sigh; a mockingly dreamy sigh before she giggled. “You practically gave yourself away to me on our first encounter, Commander. I honestly didn’t think I’d get you with my kiss, though I seemed I overestimated you and your hormones.” She sighed again, leaning her right elbow on her left wrist. She was circling the boy, trying to avert his attention in another attempt to distract him. Maybe she could get away unscathed and without anymore questions directed at her from other students. 

Giggling and staring at him with half-lidded eyes, she saw the haired boy grow uneasy. He shifted uncomfortably and started to back away from the young twin. “Are you afraid of me?” She purred as she stepped toward him. He tried to take another step, but hit the wall. He was trapped. With no answer, Kikyo returned to her assault on the boy. Her lunch bag had been dropped to the floor with the box and she rested her hands on his shoulders. Satoshi gulped and looked her over as she pressed her body against his, leaning most of her weight on his chest and the ball of her right foot; left popped in the air, bent at the knee. She looked up at him, and with her left hand, she pulled his glasses off and tossed them next to her bag. 

 **Oh, what’s this, Master Satoshi?** Krad interjected, seeing his blue haired tamer weak in the knees upon Kikyo Niwa’s ineffective adorable seduction. **I see she’s back. Why not let me take over and teach her a lesson,** he suggested, definitely hinting to something bigger than just a sneak attack on her. 

 _Enough, Krad! I can handle this myself!_ Satoshi barked and Krad sighed.

**You really are no fun, my friend...**

As Kikyo continued to distract Satoshi, Krad smirked; it was cute, her attempts at seduction. She was terrible, but she tried, the effort wasn’t lost on him and Master Satoshi fell for it hard. It would be so easy for him to make the switch, come out and show the girl just what she was messing with. Satoshi was pushing the blond down with his every fiber of his being though. 

Kikyo gave light, feathery kisses to Satoshi’s neck, distracted him as he had his mental conversation with Krad. Satoshi’s hands snapped up to grab her waist and she exhaled against his neck, causing the Hikari boy to shiver once again. Reaching up on her tip-toes, Kikyo flicked her tongue out behind Satoshi’s ear, and he made an odd noise – a cross between a whimper and a groan. When her lips reached his ear and Satoshi was completely immobilized, she drove her point home. “ _Stay the hell away from my brother_. I’m his guardian; I will do _anything_ to protect him. Dark can protect himself, but if you hurt Daisuke in any way shape or form, I will _personally_ rip you to shreds. That goes for the other you, too.”

Krad laughed, thoroughly amused with the girl. He wanted to see this pretty little thing tear him apart. Krad wouldn’t let her hurt Master Satoshi, of course, but he would just _love_ to see her try against him. 

But he knew it was all an act. She put on a tough front, but what would she do when she actually came face-to-face with the angel? He wondered about that and wanted to see the reaction on this little thing. He would have to try it out. All he needed to do was find the perfect time.

When Kikyo pulled away from Satoshi, his arms were still in the same position, suspended and grabbing the air where she had been. The brunette picked up her things from the ground, but didn’t bother to grab the boy’s glasses. He really didn’t need them and she was about to step on them, but she wasn’t that cruel. She didn’t get a chance to either, before Satoshi pulled her back, making her drop her things once more and let out a yelp of surprise. Satoshi pulled her back by her wrist and her back hit the wall as she was in the same position he was in moments ago. Though, instead of her arms around his waist, he was holding her wrists next to her head. 

He smirked, “Well, isn’t this nostalgic.” Satoshi had the upper hand now, and they were in the same position as they were on the night of Dark’s first theft. Her arms were pinned down, he had his body pressed firmly against her own and his right knee was in between her legs. Instantly she struggled, rocking her body from side to side in an attempt to throw off his grip. He wasn’t letting her go anytime soon, that was for sure. She stopped in her resistance, strands of hair falling in front of her eyes. Satoshi looked down at her with his baby blue eyes and she faltered for a moment; he was stunningly handsome without those glasses on. Even she wouldn’t mind being seen with him; dating him - what a hot item they would be. 

_That’s absurd. I would never date him. Ever._

Satoshi’s smirk still lingered. “Are you afraid of me?” He asked, copying Kikyo’s exact words and brought her out from her thoughts. Before she even got to respond, he latched his lips onto hers in a bruising kiss. Kikyo blinked repeatedly in surprise. She certainly wasn’t expecting any of this. She struggled once more, trying to push him off, but he pressed himself further into her, the cold wall apparent behind her. Her heart was beating rapidly, almost too rapidly, _I can’t pass out here, the humiliation would kill me_. Kiki willed her heart to stop beating so fast, air choking her now. _No, I can’t let this damn thing get the best of me!_ She shut her eyes tight and wished he would stop, not only because they were making a scene, but for her own sanity and health. 

He was her enemy – he was the one who would kill her and her brother without a second look. She would not allow herself to gain feelings for this boy of any kind. Yet since their first kiss she hadn’t been able to stop thinking of him, his lips on her own had felt so good, soft. That damn dream didn’t help either. But it had to just be an infatuation - all of the events that had been going on, the adrenaline had been getting to her. And worse, if she passed out. This changed nothing. 

“Mm!” Satoshi had made the bold move to pry her lips open with his tongue. As she felt her face turn red from embarrassment even more, she wondered how much entertainment he was getting from this. Obviously it had to be a ruse on his end as well. The brunette matched his boldness with her own and slipped her tongue to press against his. 

It didn’t last much longer than that though. The lunchtime bell interrupted the quiet in the hallway and Satoshi abruptly pulled back, looking at Kikyo in mild surprise. She returned the gaze, both wondering _Did that really just happen?_ As students filed into the hallway, most gasped in surprise; there were a few giggles (Kiki could guess just who exactly they were from too), and one girl shrieked at the scene before them. 

Satoshi Hiwatari was standing close, almost too close, to Kikyo Niwa; his hands supporting himself against the wall, Kikyo’s left hand on the back of his neck, right hand twisted in his shirt. Somehow during that all, Satoshi had let go of Kikyo’s wrists and she in turn threaded her fingers through his blue hair and onto the front of his shirt. They both looked like a hot mess. 

After most of the students in the hallway had gotten their fill of the scene; some girls glaring at Kiki as she composed herself, they all walked away whispering. Kikyo bent to pick up her things, grabbing Satoshi’s glasses and handing them to him. He thanked her silently and left with the crowd.

Risa had surrounded her in a matter of seconds, hands together, jumping. “Kiki, what was _that_?!” Kikyo slipped her hand into her lunch bag to make sure her mask was still there, which it was, before answering her. “A dare.” She was calm, the red in her cheeks had gone away, heart rate normal, and she was glaring playfully at another of her friends over Risa’s shoulder, “Told you I’d do it, Ai,” Said girl blinked, got the hint, and nodded in agreement. “Damn, and here I thought you were a big chicken!”

It was then that Kikyo noticed Riku and Daisuke over Ai’s shoulder, and she gulped audibly. Risa collected the other three girls and they bounded off the class as Kikyo approached the other two. Daisuke’s face was about as red as a ripe strawberry, Riku’s not much better, and the ruby haired girl ducked her head and ran between the two, on the heels of her sister. The brunette blinked as she watched the girl go, then looked up at Daisuke, sheepishly and grinned a half-assed grin. 

“Ssoooo,” she started, looking to the empty room Daisuke and Riku must have come out of. “Are we in the same, awkward boat?”

Daisuke’s eyes widened and he blushed some more - turning purple now - and he shook his head, “No, no, no, no! Nothing like that! Unlike _you!_ I saw you! And him!” He pointed to the empty space that Kikyo and Satoshi had been occupying before. Kikyo sighed and looked up at her brother.   
“Look,” she drawled “It was just a dare from Ai. Nothing really. Little fun on the side,” She lied, hoping he would take the hint and move on. Besides, it was none of his business. 

“Kiki,” Daisuke said sternly, making her head snap up to meet his gaze and stop for a moment. “You know who he is - he’s _Commander Hiwatari,_ he is _trying_ to _capture_ Dark!” the last bit came out low, so no one walking past (though no one was in the hallway now) could hear him. “Just be careful! I don’t want to break you out of jail - or worse!” 

The girl laughed at that and clapped Daisuke on the shoulder, “I know, I appreciate the concern, but I think I got this, Dai,” the bell ran and Daisuke jumped, “Better get to chemistry of you’re gonna get detention,” she sang as she ran off down the hall to her next class, math. …With Satoshi. Great.

 

OOOoooOOOooOOOoOOOoOOO

 

It had been a while since his last encounter with the female twin. Obviously as time went on they would change, but it seemed that they all still had their air of confidence around them and that same need to protect their twin sibling. All of them were a nuisance. Over the generations they picked up skills here and there, but they were no match for him. Kikyo wasn’t going to be a problem, just like Kohaku before her, Kihiri before that and all the other Niwa female twins that had been born in the family since the curse started. He was never worried when the Niwa twins made their appearance. Two to one was never fair – to anyone other than Krad, of course. Their short lifespan proved to also take into account, and what Krad would usually thank Him for, the blond angel had now sworn revenge. But to think this girl had that _thing_ inside of her. 

In the deepest depths of Satoshi’s mind, Krad contemplated battle strategies, planned attacks, and thought out his winnings as he watched. Being a full year older than the Niwa’s, Satoshi had time to watch and plan before making himself known to the tamer and his sibling. He had always known who they were, just as Daisuke’s grandfather and mother knew exactly who he was. What surprised him was that the sister knew who he was. This hadn’t been the case before. Until now, Krad had never been spoken to directly through Satoshi’s mind. It had taken months…almost a year for Daichi and Kohaku to realize that the Hikari tamer actually held the blond angel within him. 

 _Are you brooding, Krad?_ His mocking was not hidden at all, and Krad glared at the dark space around him, knowing Satoshi would be able to feel the glare on him. Still, his baby blue haired tamer smirked to himself as they walked the halls of the school Master Satoshi attended. It was pointless, really. He was Commander Hiwatari; he didn’t need to be in school. To all others it was claimed that his being in school was to have a ‘normal teenage life’. A lie that everyone soaked up like water to a sponge. The real reason was to watch _them,_ the Niwa’s. 

 **I do not brood, Master Satoshi. Merely thinking.** Krad finally responded. Satoshi barely acknowledged him and continued to watch as the teacher wrote mathematics on the board. They were already in class – again? 

 _Deep thinking, apparently._ Another well-hidden smirk was sent his way, and the blond sent another not-so-subtle glare at his master. 

 **Return to your studies, Master Satoshi, lest I feel the need to cause a scene in front of the lovely Kikyo Niwa and Azumano High School. Do you think she would appreciate being tugged into an empty classroom for a few hours? Or maybe outside when no one is looking. Perhaps –** Krad’s smirk merely grew as Satoshi clenched his pen and shut out the angel. Good. And though Satoshi shut him out, Krad was still able to see through his tamer’s eyes and he scanned the room, looking at the students. Satoshi sat in the back of the room as always. It was a bit less obvious when he stared at Kikyo or Daisuke because most of the time it looked as if he was looking at the board. The teacher didn’t notice, or probably care. Krad was thankful for his tamer’s cooperation for his request to sit in the back, and especially after Satoshi realized how useful it was. He could study their mannerisms, watch how they interacted, learn how to use them, make friends and strike when they least expect it. At first Krad thought the school idea was stupid, but he eventually saw the perks. 

When his golden gaze landed on Kikyo Niwa, Krad’s eyes narrowed and his lips twitched into a smirk. She had already captured his full attention. With the scene in the hallway from earlier in the day, he knew it would be easy for Satoshi to seduce the young girl, get close to her and the family, and then make the move to capture Dark. It would be so easy and she would have no idea. Dark could warn her, her family could warn her, but by the time he had her wrapped around his finger, she would be on their side and Krad would win. They had a deadline, too, before the curse would settle in. She was what…seventeen, now? That gave him a good few years. But that, he knew, could pass him by a flash. Especially if she continued getting sick, like Satoshi mentioned. That was new. When Krad had asked, Satoshi had gone into detail about the girl - she had a heart condition, apparently. Atrial Fibrillation, irregular heartbeats, something that had not occurred in the earlier Niwa generations. He wondered if it was something that was brought on by the curse.

The only other thing that surprised and intrigued him about the female twin was about how she looked. That surprised him the most and it ticked him off, ate away at his thoughts. Satoshi hadn’t caught on yet, but he was actually intrigued by the girl. She looked exactly like someone he had known before and he felt the smallest pinprick of pain the first time he had seen her. He remembered it clearly, too. 

 

_He and Satoshi didn’t get along. Krad tried to be nice; Satoshi wanted nothing to do with him. Even stern words from his father didn’t make the boy falter, and Krad gave up. If Satoshi was going to be difficult, so would he. He did his best to stay a bit nicer, though, for his standards. Satoshi still made things difficult. Kei didn’t care – all that man wanted was power, and Krad saw a golden opportunity arise. The two formed a bond – Kei had malicious, wonderful plans thought out and ready to be executed with the snap of his fingers or a single word. Krad liked that. Why couldn’t some of the other Hikari’s have been like him?_

_It was a Wednesday, he remembered, his first day of school. His last tamer went to school, but as generations evolved, things happened to change in his absence. School was never thrilling. Satoshi did his work, ignored the angel (much to his dislike, might he add) and kept an eye out for the Niwa boy, and his sister. Krad always had fun in the generation with twins. Not only was it challenging but it was fun to see what one did when the other was threatened. Oh, the twin bond. He didn’t care, to be honest, all he wanted to do was destroy the boy, his sister, too, if she stood in his way. And she always did._

_Satoshi didn’t have any classes with Daisuke Niwa for the first half of the day. Usually his tamer would point out the Niwa, and Krad would study them, watch how they interacted, and learn them. His tamers were usually quite enthusiastic. Shido certainly was. Oh, Shido. One of the tamers he actually enjoyed conversing with. Not only did he and Shido share the same thoughts, but Shido let him out whenever he asked, to do whatever he wanted (_ whoever _he wanted, also). Shido said he would never fall in love. Love was for fools – he was a smart man. Love was for the weak, love was not something he desired. But Shido fell for a woman and Krad felt the familiar tug of the curse, calling him again to return to the black. He and Shido had been together for twenty-three years. For over two decades the two plotted against the Niwa’s and Dark, even long after Dark returned to his subconscious and his tamer was married, with children._

_Shido apologized for falling in love. He apologized for not helping Krad like he had promised._

_It was hard to believe five generations had passed since Shido. The only other tamer who had come remotely close to being like Shido was Shouta. Shouta also allowed Krad free reign. Being cooped up in a smaller body with nothing but empty space to occupy him was maddening, something both Shido and Shouta understood. Krad was again, grateful._

_When Satoshi finally pointed out Daisuke Niwa, it had been at lunch hour. Daisuke was a small boy, thin, with red hair as bright as an apple, and dark red eyes – like his grandfather and great-grandfather before them. They never changed; it was amazing how similar they all looked. The girl, though, was nowhere to be seen. When asked, Satoshi shrugged._ She’s been sick since last Friday _, he had said. It wasn’t flu season, not yet. Daisuke didn't show up to school that Thursday or Friday. Satoshi had overheard that Daisuke wasn’t very sick, though._

_Risa Harada, one of Kikyo’s closest friends, hadn’t been in school for most of the day Friday. She appeared after lunch, near the end of the school day, in one of Satoshi’s last classes, collecting homework for the Niwa girl. As the teacher prepared what she had missed, the classroom buzzed with gossip. Kikyo Niwa had been hospitalized earlier that week, on Wednesday, and Daisuke had been out because the family was visiting her. People spread rumors that she had come down with something like mononucleosis or pneumonia. According to Satoshi, it was not common knowledge within the student population that Kikyo had a heart condition The faculty and staff of the school knew, of course, but at the behest of Kikyo Niwa herself they all kept it a secret._

_Kikyo finally came back to school on Tuesday. She was bombarded by friends with flowers and cards, people offered to help her catch up on school work. It was sickening. And he_ still _didn’t know what the damn girl looked like. She had her back to him most of the time, chatting with friends as they walked down the hall, or watching the teacher write on the board. She never once turned around. When she finally did, it was the end of the school day, and Risa ran up from behind Satoshi, calling out to her friend. Kikyo turned, smiling; she didn’t look like she had been sick. She had brown hair, perfectly fanning out as she changed direction. Her eyes were closed, and she waved at Risa. When her eyes opened again, they honed in on Satoshi but they seemed to stare straight through the blue haired boy and to the blond._

 _And she looked just like_ her _._

 

“Thinking again, Krad?” The blond finally looked up. His fingers were laced, making a bridge for his chin to sit upon, elbows on his knees and he was leaning forward, staring into the eyes of his tamer. They were in the bathroom, he noted, by the stalls behind Satoshi. Baby blue glared at him from the other side of the mirror, and Krad offered a smirk, standing from his white chair in the dark corner of Satoshi's mind that he called home, and leaning back against one of the mirrored bathroom stalls, arms crossed over his chest. The dark depths of his mind melting away to match the mirror so it seemed they were both in the same room, but it two different worlds. 

Satoshi continued to say nothing, and Krad wondered what the point was in bringing him into the bathroom. Did he just want to see his face? The silence was dragging on. It seemed like they were both waiting to say something, maybe Satoshi had heard of his earlier thoughts? Krad couldn’t tell. They exchanged glares, and Krad lowered his gaze. “I’m flattered that you want to see me, but,”

“I have a plan,”

The blond raised an eyebrow, looking back up to meet the blue gaze. “Oh?”

 

OOOoooOOOooOOOoOOOoOOO

 

It had been a few days since the hallway-make out-fiasco, and Daisuke finally stopped seething every time he laid eyes on Hiwatari. Kikyo had explained in more detail that it was a dare from Ai, who when approached by Kikyo and were told about the cover story, agreed with a gleam in her eye. Though Risa was practically Kikyo’s best friend, Ai was another close one. They both danced at the local ballet studio and had been friends for just about as long as Risa and Kikyo had been friends. Ai knew they Kikyo was covering her own ass - she had seen the make-out in the hallway, but would keep her friend’s secret for now. But she was definitely going to tell Risa too.  

Daisuke still didn’t fully believe her, but it was the best she could do for now. The positive side to the story was that Satoshi dropped all Dark and Sable talk from there on out. He avoided her, and when they encountered each other in the hall he acted as if nothing happened. Yes, Kikyo was fine with it, but it made her suspicious. He knew about her. She knew about him. They directly, bluntly told each other about their knowledge. He had returned her mask and…that was it? Something was up. Hiwatari was calm and collected, a gentleman, even, when those random encounters happened. He was normal, but Kikyo had the feeling he was up to something, and she was not looking forward to that something. 

Another plus was that she had stopped thinking about the blue haired dreamboat. Dreams were back to normal, her daytime thoughts occupied with mapping out museum layouts and escape routes when they went out to steal artifacts. As well as the cute fall and winter dresses in the windows of the shops downtown. With Winter coming in quick, she had to dig out all of her warmer clothes. 

Work and school had continued like normal. Girls, Risa especially, went on about how handsome Dark was: how he was charming and graceful. Never mind the fact that he was a _thief_. Risa gushed about him daily, Ritsuko and Mari sighed dreamily as they thought of what their life could possibly be like if they were ever to encounter Dark, have the opportunity to date and him and eventually marry him. It took all of Kikyo’s will not to laugh. Dark's already large ego would be bursting a the seams if he could hear all this – too bad he was on the other side of the courtyard with Saehara and Miyamoto. She would be sure to let him know of his fan club later. 

Daisuke had only gone out to steal a few things. One was a painting that was apparently stealing souls of the girls in town: two of those souls being Risa and Riku. Daisuke had tried his best to do things on his own, but in the end Dark had finished the mission. The painting was sealed and the owner proudly displayed it in his home, open to the public on certain days. Kikyo had opted out of that mission, partly because of Daisuke’s need to do it on his own, and Dark’s statement that too many souls within one painting could cause it to erupt and everyone would be trapped between two worlds. Kikyo rather liked her life in this world – trapped wasn’t how she pictured the rest of her days. 

Other than that, and Risa thinking she saw Dark flying outside her window _every single night,_ work was exceptionally slow. Minuscule paintings and artifacts were stolen, Dark and Sable managed to evade the police and trick Hiwatari night after night. The blue haired boy never made a huge effort to go after the thieves, though, much to their surprise. Dark had heard from Daisuke about the hallway scene – witnessed it partially – and warned her to keep a close eye on the boy. 

Field hockey season was picking up for Riku, Kikyo was preparing for the winter ballet, and Risa was part of a committee for the school dances and festivals, so they barely had any time to see one another outside of school. Takeshi had been sending out article after article about Dark and Sable, and offering prize money for anyone to get a good shot of either of them to advertise in the school newspaper. He was then hoping it would get to the town newspaper, and he would be ‘a famous reporter – they’ll ask me to do late night shows on the pair!’. Things were normal. As normal as they could be, at least, when you’re a student by day and a thief by most nights. 

 

 

When Kikyo and Daisuke had gotten home that afternoon, Emiko had some exciting news for the girl.

“Really? Like, really really!” Kikyo was bouncing on the balls of her feet, hands clasped around her mother’s and smiling so much it made her eyes sparkle. It was her big break, the moment she had been waiting for, the night she had been dreaming of.

It was finally her time for a solo mission. 

“Yes, I did promise you, didn’t I?” Emiko wrestled her hands away from her daughters grip and handed her a manila folder, filled with pictures, a description and location of her artifact. Kikyo opened it with elation that she thought she was going to get dizzy with all the excitement. When her mind finally calmed down enough for her to read the text and look at the images, Kiki cocked her head. “A book?”

“Not just any book,” Emiko leaned over Kiki’s shoulder to look with her and pointed to specific lines in the text.

She skimmed it over carefully, red eyes darting across the page at an alarming pace. “A spell book!” For real, this was awesome. Her grandfather had told her about how some of the earlier generations of Niwa’s had used spell books for a majority of their time as Sable. Dark had no need since he was basically a walking spell book on his own, but this, for Kiki, was a big deal. “Is it gonna be mine?” She asked dreamily, holding the folder to her chest. Emiko nodded and Kiki squealed in delight as she looked over the images one more time. The book was obviously old, leather-bound, Latin ; the pages were uneven and yellowed from use, but she could tell from the way it looked that someone had loved it very much. 

She couldn’t wait to get her hands on it. “When do I go?”

“Tonight,”

 

OOOoooOOOooOOOoOOOoOOO

 

The warning letter had been sent out as soon as Kikyo had the word from her mother. The police were surrounding the museum within the next hour; flood lights set up around the perimeter, guards at every door, police cars and vans blocking the streets, people lined up outside waiting to get their look at the Phantom Thief Dark and his assistant. And Commander Hiwatari at the center of it all.

Kikyo was nervous to be going out on her own, she had asked Daisuke to stay behind at the house and watch her from the news broadcast on TV. 

She watched the scene below, police rushing to make sure all entrances were covered, prepping themselves as the time ticked on, waiting for the moment when Sable would descend from the skies and make her attempt at stealing the _Artis Magicae_. Kikyo glanced at the watch on her wrist; the warning letter had stated that she - alone - would be stealing the book at 10:00 PM sharp. It was 9:57 PM and counting; her nerves getting the best of her, heart beating fast, goosebumps danced on her skin, the chilly night air not adding to her comfort level.

She was wearing a black catsuit tonight, a zipper ending just under her ribs, tall black boots and her usual mask over her face, turning her into the Phantom Sable everyone knew. The brunette pulled her gloves back on over her watched after she had checked the time again.

 

9:58 PM.

 _Just a few more minutes and I'll be in - in and out before they even know it._ She didn't have many tricks up her sleeve, but enough to make her first solo run a success. Besides, she was so determined to get that book, she wouldn't let anything stop her at this point. Her eyes darted down to the parking lot again, where Detective Saehara was yelling at the police with a loudspeaker, telling them to be alert, watch the skies and don't let her escape. They had the same speech every night Dark and Sable made an appearance, but still no one was able to catch them yet.

 

10:00 PM.

The detective started sputtering even more, groups of police officers running into the building, surrounding the main entrance, side doors, windows on the first floor, even. Kiki took a deep breath and stood from her perch in the building nearby. Lelia was wrapped around her neck, nuzzling into the side of her face. "Ready?" Kiki asked, and the little ferret-like creature transformed into the massive black wings, Sable and Dark's icons. 

She took off, soaring above the crowd - one little girl shrieked in excitement and people looked up, flashing pictures, yelling her name and gaining the press and police's attention. Everyone's eyes were on her. The camera's honed in on her, getting close up video and following her as she made her way to the rooftop of the museum. Below she could faintly hear the detective shouting orders to apprehend her. Once she had made it to the roof, she set down and pulled out three black feathers and set them down. Using what little magic she knew that Dark had taught her, she created three clones - they couldn't speak but they could make good distractions. They stood on the edges of the rooftop, looking down at the crowd as Kikyo moved to the ventilation shaft that opened up on the roof. She was surprised no guards had been posted up here. 

She could still hear Saehara's father yelling down below, shouting out orders as the three Sable clones flew in different directions. She knew it would throw them off for a bit, trying to find out which was the real one. It would buy her enough time to get into the museum and get to the book. Lelia had transformed back into her normal form and buried her way back to Kiki's neck while she clamored through the shafts in the ceiling. Something about her solo mission didn't seem right. There were too many things lining up too well. Things were going way too well for her liking. 

Kikyo dropped down onto the third floor of he museum. From the layout that she had, it was most likely that the book was going to be in the smallest room down the hallway from her location. Keeping to the shadows and blending in, the brunette was able to pass by a few guards and only had to knock one out the entire time.  

Still too easy. Granted it had been easy when she and Dark ran together, but this time she was on her own and it seemed like it wasn't even a big deal. She was getting closer to the room now, she could see the light filtering in from the windows. Hiding around the corner she checked to see if there were officers guarding the book, which there were none. Coming out into the open, Kiki frowned and wrinkled her nose up. Something was definitely wrong. She was so close now, she could see the book sitting on a glass-covered pedestal, just waiting to be taken. It was mere feet away from her and she was rooted to the spot, thinking of what traps may be lurking inside the room.  

"You let your guard down," someone sang in her ear. Kiki gasped and spun around, turning to face the voice, only to be mildly surprised at the sight.

"Hiwatari!"

He took her moment of confusion and clasped a pair of police grade handcuffs on each of her wrists and twisted them behind her back, earning a glare from the thief. _Shit_ , she thought, tugging at her wrists to see if they would give at all. But they wouldn't, of course. "And here I thought I was rid of you," she sighed and watched as walked into the room holding the book and opened up the casing it was sealed behind. No alarms went off, no police officers rushing into the room. Just an eerie silence and the sound of her own heartbeat pounding in her ears. He closed the case as he walked back towards her and flipped through the pages of the book carefully. He looked uninterested in the book and turned his blue gaze on her. 

"I'm surprised your family is bringing back using spell books again. There aren't many left in the world in this condition anymore, either." He closed the book and turned back to the girl.

"Look, are you gonna take me in or not? Because I have places to go, things to steal. You know the drill," her fear was starting to set in but she tried not to let it show. She had been trying this entire time to get the damn handcuffs off her but they wouldn't budge, almost as if they were enchanted. What if he _was_ going to capture her? What would she do then? Her family was watching from home and they would know right away what had happened. The police would expose her identity and her family would have to flee before the police caught up with them. Or maybe they weren't even going to expose her. Maybe Hiwatari would just hand her over to Krad, use her as bait for Dark to show and then kill them both.

Kikyo inhaled sharply and shut her eyes tight; willing those entirely possible thoughts away. It would be all her fault. If she had just asked Dark to come along with her, just as a backup, just in case, maybe then this wouldn't have happened. Maybe then she would already be on her way home, or even at home and studying the book, learning its contents. If she hadn't been so determined to prove that she could do this on her own, then maybe she wouldn't be thinking of her family's demise.

Hiwatari's voice brought her out of her thoughts and she was once again surprised by the boy. "It would be rude to arrest a lady on a first date," Kiki was looking wide eyed at him, her blue glamoured eyes stuck on him, wondering if he was joking. Tucking the book under his arm, Satoshi unlocked the handcuffs, freeing her hands to her sides. Instinctively Kiki rubbed her wrists. 

"What do you mean 'first date'?" She wondered, picking through her brain and trying to remember just when exactly she had agreed to a date with the boy. A light smirk played at Satoshi's face as he watched her try to remember. It took a few more moments of Kikyo doing some deep thinking, but she finally connected the dots. 

_“You like the arts as much as I do. Not just paintings, but, what you do, Miss Niwa; dancing. I hear you're quite good. I wanted to know your take on different types." He turned back to her, slightly smiling. Kiki blinked at him, leaning against the chalkboard. "Are you free tonight?”_

_Kikyo laughed, lightly, looking at the painting. "Well, I'm flattered that you'd want to talk about my dancing," Actually, she was slightly flattered, but she had her suspicions. "But I'm afraid tonight isn't the best night. It's my birthday. I'm supposed to be home early so I can celebrate with my family."_

_Satoshi sighed, setting the stick and rag on the tray underneath the chalkboard. He turned to Kikyo, hand extended in a hand-shake gesture "That's too bad. Another time, then?”_

_The brunette stared at the hand briefly, but smiled lightly, extending her own hand. "Another time.”_

"'Another time' indeed," her hand reached up to take the mask off, glamour falling off, her hair cascading down her back as if it had been pulled from an up do. She set her cherry red eyes on him and laughed, accepting the book he had offered her. She cradled it delicately in her arms. "Thank you,"

Satoshi nodded to her in response, and started walking away, towards the stairs leading down to the main floors of the museum. "You tell me the time and place of our next date," he stopped and looked over his shoulder, "and I'll be there," When he started to descend the stairs, Kiki heard Satoshi speaking into a communication device and the telltale clamor of police officers rushing the building on orders. 

"I found the Phantom Thief," His voice echoed off the walls, "She's got the book!" 

"After her!"

"Don't let her get away!"

Kiki bit her lip with a slight smile on her face, and stood in the hallway a moment longer before pulling the mask back on and taking over the Sable persona. When the officers and Detective Saehara finally came to the third floor, Kikyo was laughing at them as she stood in the window of the museum, her voice echoing off the walls of the museum. 

They advanced on her and she jumped back, black wings taking her off into the night. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Unum Diem Dtrantia - ephemeral
> 
> Artis Magicae - Magic Trade


End file.
